Roland’s practice focuses exclusively on employment and labor law. Roland has exclusively handled employment cases since 1992.  His recent awards and recognition include the following:  2020 Top Labor and Employment Lawyer in California (Daily Journal); 2020 Leading Lawyer in Labor and Employment: Labor and Employment Disputes, Including Collective Actions (Legal 500 United States Guide); 2020 Leader of Influence: Top Litigators & Trial Lawyers (Los Angeles Business Journal); 2020 Top Minority Attorney in Los Angeles (Los Angeles Business Journal), and 2019 Top Litigator & Trial Lawyer (Los Angeles Business Journal).  He has also been recognized as a California Labor and Employment Star and was nominated as California's top Labor & Employment Litigation Attorney in 2019, both by Benchmark Litigation. Hunton’s California Employment Group was also nominated as the California Employment Group of the Year in 2019 by Benchmark. Roland’s experience includes class actions, non-compete, non-solicitation and employee raiding cases, discrimination, harassment, disability, wage and hour, PAGA and Title III website accessibility cases. He has numerous recent trial and arbitration wins and regularly practices in state and federal courts and JAMS arbitrations in California. 

Roland is a contributing author to the firm’s Employment & Labor Perspectives blog. He also serves as the Co-Head of Hunton Andrews Kurth’s Unfair Competition and Information Protection Task Force. He is also a member of the Firm’s national associates committee. Roland is admitted to practice before the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 5th, 9th and 11th Circuits; U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Central Districts of California and Texas; and the Northern District of Georgia. He was also a law clerk for Acting Justice Carol H. Arber, New York State Supreme Court (1990).

Bar Admissions

Education
JD, Columbia Law School, 1992

BA, University of New Mexico, with Distinction, 1989

• Multiple national and California-based wage and hour class and collective actions, involving overtime and exemption issues.
• Multiple actions involving non-competition, trade secrets and disclosure of confidential information, in federal and state court, in both California and Texas.
• Regional handling of single plaintiff harassment and discrimination cases.
• Extensive California and federal experience in disabled accessibility litigation under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
• Experience with employment-related issues in complex corporate transactions, including negotiating and drafting executive employment agreements.
• Represents multiple clients in Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower retaliation cases.
• Experience with handling union-related matters, including arbitrations, collective bargaining, strikes, and matters before the National Labor Relations Board.
• Represents clients in the retail, restaurant, grocery, entertainment, temporary and permanent placement, oil and gas, manufacturing, technology, investment and hedge fund industries.

• Co-Chair, Restrictive Covenants/Trade Secrets Subcommittee, ABA Section of Litigation Employment and Labor Relations Committee, July 2015 to present
• Chief Counsel, U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, pro bono appointment, 2009 - Present
• Leadership Los Angeles, Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, 2009 - Present
• Member, American Bar Association, Employment and Business Law Sections
• Member, California Bar Association, Labor and Employment Law Section

• Distinguished Alumni Award, Columbia Law School, LALSA, 2012
• Outstanding Pro Bono Service, Hunton & Williams, 2010-2012
• Chairman's Award for Distinguished Service, United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, 2011
• Selected as a Super Lawyer, Southern California Super Lawyers magazine, 2011. A description of the selection methodology can be found on Super Lawyers’ webpage.
• Selected as a Rising Star, Texas Super Lawyers magazine, 2005-2007. A description of the selection methodology can be found on Super Lawyers’ webpage.

• “No Rehire” Language in Settlement Agreement Found Unlawful Where Not Narrowly Tailored

  By Roland Juarez |October 2018

• Buyer beware - workplace risks associated with PDA use, Financier Worldwide
• Appellate ruling addresses legality of unlimited vacation policies, Daily Journal
• Pending Bill SB 403 Would Add Caste to California’s Anti-Discrimination Laws, The Recorder
• What Employers Need to Know about the New Workplace Violence Prevention Standards, HR Daily Advisor
• In High Stakes Battle Between Arbitration and PAGA, Wins, Losses, and Questions, The Recorder
• Courts Now Are Respecting Transgender Rights, National Law Journal
• ADA Insights From 2nd Circ. ‘Needle-Phobia’ Decision, Law360
• Insights On Time-Rounding Systems for Calif. Employers, Law360
• Website accessibility for the disabled: a perfect storm, Daily Journal
• SB 553: New workplace violence prevention procedures, Daily Journal
• California Supreme Court Clarifies Burden of Proof in Whistleblower Retaliation Claims, The Recorder
• Sleepless in California, Financier Worldwide